Reza Aslan

Dr. Reza Aslan is an internationally acclaimed Iranian-American scholar of religions, public commentator, and Emmy- and Peabody-nominated television producer whose narrative nonfiction deftly deconstructs foundational spiritual myths to explore the intersection of personal faith and geopolitical history. Born in Tehran and arriving in the United States following the 1979 Iranian Revolution, Aslan formalized his multidisciplinary expertise by earning a Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies from Santa Clara University, a Master of Theological Studies from Harvard Divinity School, a Master of Fine Arts in Fiction from the prestigious Iowa Writers' Workshop, and a Doctor of Philosophy in the Sociology of Religions from the University of California, Santa Barbara. A tenured Professor of Creative Writing at the University of California, Riverside, he achieved global literary prominence with his international debut bestseller, No god but God: The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam, followed by his monumental number-one New York Times bestseller, Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth, and his anthropological inquiry, God: A Human History. Beyond his tenure as a James Joyce Award recipient and Hollywood creative consultant for major cultural franchises, he co-founded BoomGen Studios and executive produced prominent non-fiction media platforms including CNN's Believer. Moving dynamically through 2025 and into 2026, Aslan has aggressively advanced the contemporary dialogue surrounding Middle Eastern geopolitics and democratic resistance. Building directly upon the success of his critically acclaimed historical biography An American Martyr in Persia, Aslan has dominated premium editorial circles throughout 2026, delivering widely discussed New York Times commentary analyzing modern Iranian protest movements alongside his highly sought-after 2026 public lecture series, History as Fuel, which reframes the evolution of global religious conflict and democratic sovereignty for international audiences.